


No Love, No Light

by tickingNotepad (orphan_account)



Category: Homestuck
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2014-10-03
Updated: 2014-10-03
Packaged: 2018-02-19 16:51:57
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,466
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2395721
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/orphan_account/pseuds/tickingNotepad
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>An AU in which an older Rose adopts two little black haired children.</p>
            </blockquote>





	No Love, No Light

**Author's Note:**

> The title does not actually make sense with what happens in the story. It basically just came from how John and Jade felt at one point before the story. Also, lots of dialogue. Lots of it. You've been warned. On with the story.
> 
> EDIT: I changed some things and added a little bit more to the story.

You kick the ground, scraping against the pavement. Dried up leaves crunch underneath your feet. It was fall, and you were currently bundled up in the color of the royals, with a mauve scarf and a grape coat. You were coming home from a day at the library. You really do wish you could've stayed there longer, but it had started to close down and the sun had already set. Oh well. These thick books in your arms would have to do.

You walk quickly, eager to get home. The streetlights illuminate your way as you walk, creating a repeating pattern of darkness and light. 

You slow down when you start to get closer to your car. You are almost there when you hear a slight sniffle, coupled with a sob. You look around. Nothing here but a dark alley that you'd rather not go to and sidewalks. You shrug. Maybe you're imagining things. You begin to walk again before the sound returns, this time louder. You whip your head to the alley, starting to slowly walk towards it. The sniffling gets louder and louder until you finally reach one of those huge public trash bins. You look to the left side of it and find...a boy. He is covered in dirt and trash, and he's the where all tat sniffling is coming from. He looks about 6 years old. You look at him with a slight curiosity.

"Hello." He jumps and scurries away from you.

"Wh-who are you?" You put your hands in front of you in a non-threatening gesture, but he flinches like you're about to beat him.

"I'm not going to hurt you, I promise. My name is Rose. What's yours?" He waits a few minutes before answering, "John." You smile.

"John. That's a nice name." He smiles back at you hesitantly, his mouth barely curling up to form the shape of one, but even then you can see two big front teeth.

"Where are your parents?" His slight change in expression is gone as quickly as it comes, making it seem as if it was never there in the first place.

"My dad's...gone. And I dunno who my mom is." You frown as well. Gone? Did his father die somehow? And how come John doesn't even know who his own mother is?

"Is there anyone else that can take care of you?" John shakes his head.

Your frown grows even deeper. A young boy who had a whole life ahead of him, left to die on the streets. It would bring you to tears if you were the sort of person to cry easily. 

A brash idea strikes your mind. Instead of waving it away like you normally would, you let it fester there and ponder on it. 

As the idea continues to grow in your mind , you start thinking that maybe that wasn't such a bad idea. You decide to voice it and see how John would react. You proceed to speak slowly so that he wouldn't get scared again.

"John? Would you...like to live with me?" He looks at you with a shocked expression.

A few minutes pass before he replies. "Are you serious?" His response is quiet, and you can barely hear it when he actually says something. Maybe this was a bad idea.

"Yes...if you're willing, of course." Another minutes passes before John's face splits into a wide smile.

"Yeah! That'd be nice! But you have to bring my sister, or else!" You quirk an eyebrow.

"Sister?" John nodded. He then turns his back away from you and yells towards a pile of rubbish.

"It's okay, Jade! She won't hurt us!" A girl with the same black hair as John comes out, equally filthy. She stares at you with wide green eyes. Well. You certainly weren't expecting this.

"A-are you sure, John?" He nods. Jade then smiles and runs up to you.

"Hi, I'm Jade! Nice to meet you!" You chuckle.

"It's nice to meet you as well. I assume you heard everything?" She nods.

"Yep. I wanna go home with you too!" You chuckle again.

"Well, alright then. Follow me." Both of the children trail after you as you return to the path you were previously following to your automobile. You unlock the doors and allow the siblings to jump in before getting in yourself and starting up the car. You get home in 20 minutes. The moon has come out already, and the stars twinkle brightly between clumps of clouds. You hold the hands of John and Jade to guide them through the dark. Once they come to your house, though, they stop. You tug on their hands, but they don't move. You look back.

"John? Jade? What's wrong?"

"Your house is so nice on the outside. Our house was never this nice!" John exclaims. You smile.

"Well, thank you. I wouldn't consider it an especially lavish home, but it's certainly better than most apartments. However, if you want to live in it, you have to actually go in. Come on." They start to walk again. You unlock the door and lead them to the bathroom. You turn on the shower and plug the drain.

"Now, if you're going to live with me, you need to be clean, and I don't think you know how to clean yourselves yet, so I'm going to have to give you two baths until you can." They comply willingly and you soon find yourself with two soapy heads and bodies, sloshing bathwater around. John plays with the soap bubbles as Jade squeaks a tiny squiddle your brother bought as an "ironic" present for your last birthday.

You have them dried off in ten minutes with blue and green towels and dull black hairdryers. You find them clothes that used to fit you when you were their age and slip it on them.

"There you are. Now you look like perfectly average children." You look at the clock and wince. Nine already? You turn around and clasp your hands together.

"Well kids, I'm afraid it's time for that special hour where we fall unconscious under our own will. Meaning to say that it's bedtime." They whine, as to be expected.

"It's not that bad. Sleep is quite important. I'll read you a bedtime story if you go to sleep." That shut their mouths. They still pout when you tuck them both into a big guest bed, though.

"What are you going to read us?" Jade inquires.

"What would you like me to read?" They both shrug.

"Don't know? Alright, I'll pick one." You go into your room and skim the bookshelf until you find a nice, nostalgic picture book. You go back in the room to find both of the kids waiting for you eagerly. You sit down and begin to read.

"A little girl had gone to the aquarium. She had a special little hat that she wore everywhere she went, but she had lost it. She says, 'AC's hat is gone, AC wants it back'. She begins to search around the aquarium and finds the seal trainer. She asks, 'Have you seen my hat?' The trainer replies, 'No, I have not seen you hat.' The little girl thanks her and moves on. She finds the penguin feeder and asks him..." You continue to read on until you hear snoring. You look up. Both of them have fallen asleep. You smile and leave the book on a nightstand for them to read if they wished in the morning.

"Good night." You close the door and head to your room. The minute your head hits the pillow, doubt gnaws at your consciousness. What if you couldn't raise them? After all, you are only 23. 23 is not the age to start parenting-wait. Are you actually going to raise them? Were you even suited to raise them? Oh god, what if they grow up and begin to have a passive-aggressive relationship with you like you did with your mother? On the note of your mother, the emotions of fondness, remorse and guilt resurface and mix to form a lump in your throat. You do so miss her and wish you hadn't spent the majority of your childhood resenting the affectionate actions she took while acting as your mother. It's not like you can do anything about it, though. It was just something to look back and frown upon now. It might be wise to call her tomorrow, though. Maybe apologize for some of the things you did and ask about what to do when you just so happen to be tasked with raising two children. Yes, that sounds good. You make an inner note to remember to do this.

You sleep uneasily for the rest of the night.

**Author's Note:**

> I realize that I should probably give credit for the little story Rose reads to the kids when she wants them to go to sleep. It comes from an Aquariumstuck comic made by the lovely salihombox, who also made the AU. You guys should go check them out! Their art is incredible and the Aquariumstuck AU is just adorable.


End file.
